Bush ok's Gulf of Mexico Drilling

[H2Andy]

whatever their effect, for millennia the Earth was able to handle all the volcanos and fires in it

then, in a matter of a few decades COINCIDENTAL WITH MAN'S INDUSTRIAL ACTIVITY
it all goes haywire...

doesn't it at least make you go... hmmmmm......?

 

[Mafiaman]

Yes Andy it does, It makes me also wonder if there isn't some off setting effects,

Makes you want to go hmmmm.....

 

[H2Andy]

sorry, i don't know what you mean by setting effects

 

[Mafiaman]

mafiaman, two points:

1. coral bleach because the algae in them die when the water gets too hot; the algae gives them their color; without the algae, the coral eventually die

The Zooxanthellac or what you call algae is what determines the pigmentation of corals and the loss of this can cause a transparency to the flesh of corals how ever the loss of flesh is RTN and the death of the corals.

2. coral can normally migrate if heating is slow and gradual; they are hosed when it is fast and furious, as has been recently

This is true and false, as corals grow the encrusting process on rocks appears to be slow how ever when broken off by a storm In a natural propagation process every small piece of a coral that is deposited has a chance at growing into a new colony much in the same way as some plants can be clipped and Propagated.

I would suggest reading Corals by Eric Borneman, Anthony Calfo (I have a signed book from him) and possibly Robbert Fenner.

 

[Mafiaman]

sorry, i don't know what you mean by setting effects

"Off Setting" meaning that there is some off setting when we put out fires to off set the CO2 that our Cars, TV's, Computers, Toasters and Breathing creates.

Is there no off set there?

 

[H2Andy]

how ever the loss of flesh is RTN and the death of the corals.

which is caused by the loss of the algae ... which is caused by the hot water ...

every small piece of a coral that is deposited has a chance at growing into a new colony much in the same way as some plants can be clipped and Propagated.

under normal circumstances. because the water is so hot, the new coral still can't get colonized by algae, so it dies too ... see above

I would suggest reading Corals by Eric Borneman, Anthony Calfo (I have a signed book from him) and possibly Robbert Fenner.

excellent, i sure willl ... i find corals fascinating

 

[Mafiaman]

Andy I would also recommend Jen Veron, Corals of the world Vol. 1 only the other two deal mostly with I.D.'ing corals via skeletal remains

 

[ReefHound]

"Off Setting" meaning that there is some off setting when we put out fires to off set the CO2 that our Cars, TV's, Computers, Toasters and Breathing creates.

Is there no off set there?

The forests we are saving doesn't come close to offsetting the forests and jungles we are destroying.

 

[Mafiaman]

{a note for you reading along} The corals Andy and I are discussing to this point are SPS corals (short polyp stony) that live almost exclusively at the top of the reef, mostly belonging to two families, Acropora and Montipora.
Which in a lot of areas are exposed during low tide to the air a few times a month. (which I'll add to my argument later if need be)

We have not discussed the more populous corals Octocorallia Or more commonly known as softies and leathers. These types have been expanding in population and are very good at chemical warfare, It is widely believed that it may indeed be this expansion of softies that may bring about the demise of large amounts of SPS.

Another point that has not been made is that the building block of all ocean life is Cyno bacteria the first link in the food chain, it thrives in higher temps. and Higher CO2 levels. This would ultimately cause major explosions in the amount of food at the lower end of the food chain that is just not there.

On a personal note, this last year diving in the Keys I observed the lowest amount of Cyno in a long time, Conceding this is in no way a clinical study.

 

[Mafiaman]

The forests we are saving doesn't come close to offsetting the forests and jungles we are destroying.

No argument from me on this, But the information I was seeking was how does putting out a fire that may have burned a quarter of a Continent if left un-checked cut down on a natural contributer of CO2?